New Delhi: The Supreme Court of India ruled on Monday said that a death sentence can be challenged under Article 32 of the Constitution if there has been a breach of procedural safeguards during the sentencing phase. This landmark decision was made while the court agreed to reconsider the case of a death row convict, Vasant Sampat Dupare.
A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sanjay Karol, and Sandeep Mehta allowed Dupare’s plea, acknowledging that procedural safeguards had been violated in his case. The court referenced its 2022 judgment in Manoj Vs. Madhya Pradesh, which mandated that trial courts collect a psychiatric and psychological evaluation report of the accused before awarding the death penalty.
“We hold that Article 32 of the Constitution empowers this court in cases related to capital punishment to reopen the sentencing stage where the accused has been condemned to death penalty without ensuring that the guidelines mandated in the Manoj vs. Madhya Pradesh was followed,” the bench stated.
The court further emphasized that this “corrective power” is intended to ensure that a condemned person’s fundamental rights to equal treatment, individualized sentencing, and a fair procedure—as guaranteed by Articles 14 and 21—are not violated.
The court, however, clarified that the use of Article 32 for such challenges should not become a routine practice. It specified that reopening a case will be reserved only for instances where there is a “clear, specific breach of the new procedural safeguards.” Such breaches, the court said, are so serious that if left uncorrected, they would undermine the accused’s basic rights to dignity and a fair process.
While the Supreme Court upheld Dupare’s conviction, it set aside the 2017 ruling on his sentencing. The matter has been referred to Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai for an appropriate listing to be heard afresh.
Vasant Sampat Dupare, from Nagpur, was convicted for the 2008 rape and murder of a four-year-old girl. His death sentence was confirmed by the Supreme Court in 2014, and his subsequent review and mercy petitions were all rejected, the last of which was by the President in 2023.